The Curse of the TImelords
by OnTheLastPage
Summary: The Doctor regenerates into his 12th and final form. Reuniting with old friends, he's shown love, compassion, and.. as with every tragedy.. pain. This story feautures: Rose Tyler, John Smith (10.5) and a new character I made up. I hope you all enjoy! Reviews are greatly appreciated!
1. Chapter 1: Prologue Breaking

PROLOGUE: BREAKING

Have you ever had everything you ever loved ripped right out of your arms?

Have you ever had it happen more than once?

Have you ever wanted to do anything to be with that one person?

Even if it meant breaking a lot of rules and crossing your own time-line just to see that smile again?

The first time I went back, I was there to change what happened. Because I couldn't live like that. I couldn't bear to go on without that one person there. I wanted so much to change what happened. To erase it from time. I wanted to change everything about that day. But when I got there, I knew there was nothing that I could do. There are things in flux and things that are fixed. And as much as I hated it, this was fixed. So instead of changing cruel destiny, I had to relive my own nightmare. My light was gone. I was swimming in a sea of blackness. There was no way out, I was meant to be miserable for the rest of my sad existence. There's a reason why Time Lords have two hearts. If a mere human were to experience what I went through over and over, their single heart would break, and they would die. I suppose this is another curse of the Time Lords. Not being able to die when you so desperately want to.

I'm getting ahead of myself. Like I always do. So let's go back. Join me in this blue police box that's much bigger on the inside and I'll explain everything. Because someone needs to know. Someone needs to understand why I did what I did. So take my hand, and I'll show you everything that's breaking me in two. Let's go back to the beginning. I'll tell you everything. For once in my life, I won't hold anything back.

You have been warned.


	2. Chapter 2: Twelve

TWELVE

The Doctor stared at the house the TARDIS landed in front of. So many things were running through his head. His last goodbye to Amy and Rory. The way he hugged them. Knowing that that hug would be the last hug he ever gave them in that body. He was nearly 1300 years old. It was time for him to leave.

After the incident that had happened to make him turn into a new man, he decided to say goodbye to the Ponds before he regenerated. Even though they stopped being his companions long before, even though they weren't in the same year anymore due to the angels, he still felt a connection to them. Knowing exactly what that connection was, and forever would be, River. She was, after all, his wife. The woman he loved. The woman who knew who he really was. His real name, his Gallifreyan name. River was everything that made him a better being. But now she was gone. Long gone. All he wanted to do was forget.

He stepped back into the TARDIS after he said goodbye, and smiled as she hummed, happy he was home. He decided to go back to the present. So he set route for 2013. When the TARDIS landed, the Doctor touched the console and took a deep breath.

"What do you say old girl? You think I might finally be ginger this time," he had asked the TARDIS minutes before he changed.

The regeneration wasn't nearly as painful as his previous one had been. As he was changing, he kept shouting "Ginger! I will be ginger!" He watched as the hands he had grown so accustomed to changed into skinnier, darker hands. His fingers were now long and thin. His whole body seemed to get thinner and darker. He was tan. That was new. He was normally pale.

_If I'm now tan maybe I might be ginger! _He thought happily as the rest of his body transformed.

The jacket he had previously worn was now shorter around his arms and the bottom of his jacket was now at his belly. His pants were short at the bottom and falling off around the waist. He felt a pain in his feet as they tried to break out of his shoes.

_So I'm taller, thinner, bigger, darker and_...

He felt his head, his nose was smaller and his chin wasn't sticking out as it had in his previous regeneration. His ears were smaller too. He felt his mouth.

_Eh, I've had better_ he thought, taking a deep breath.

He opened his mouth to feel his teeth. Perfect. He had a mouth that would make a dentist jump with glee. He was smiling as he went up to feel his hair. Longish. Not as long as his previous self. But a bit longer than it was during his 10th. It was straight, there were no curls. He pulled on it, trying desperately to see what color it was, but it wasn't long enough to see.

He searched around frantically for a mirror. Pulling off his bow-tie as he walked around to find one.

_Bow-ties_, he decided, _are not cool_.

He decided to go in the dressing room. There was a mirror there and he could pick out an outfit after he looked himself over. He walked into the dressing room and looked in the mirror. He wasn't bad looking. He looked a lot younger than his previous self. If a human were to see him they would guess he was in his early 20's.

_Hmm, I just keep getting younger and younger. One of my regenerations might just turn me into a toddler._ He laughed at that thought.

"Imagine me as a toddler, old girl. Would I have a sonic rattle?" He said to the TARDIS.

He knew though, that this was his last. His number was up at 12. He looked up, seeing his hair. His hair looked... was it.. it was!

"I'M GINGER!" he shouted excitedly.

After all this time, he was finally ginger. His eyes were a nice shade of green. They looked almost sea green. And his hair was a dark shade of red, almost brown. But he was ginger.

"I'm finally ginger" he said to his reflection smiling, showing dimples.

Dimples. He was ginger and had dimples.

"Oh, this is tremendous!" He shouted, giving out a chuckle.

The TARDIS shook a little, laughing at how he was acting like a kid at Christmas. He kissed the mirror, clearly pleased with this new regeneration, and picked out a pair of jeans and a plain green t-shirt and put on some green Converse.

"New man, new style." He said smiling at himself in the mirror.

He felt like something was missing, so he went deeper into the closet of the dressing room and walked out holding a fedora. It was the standard black color.

"This," he decided as he put the hat on his head "is my signature." After all, every regeneration needs a signature.

He walked back to the control room, patting the console as he smiled to himself.

"So dear, where should we go now?" He asked the TARDIS, not really caring where they went.

The TARDIS hummed and started moving. Deciding on a destination.

One that would forever change the Doctor.


	3. Chapter 3:The House

THE HOUSE

So there he was. Staring at the house the TARDIS landed in front of. All those thoughts running through his head, with one shouting out above the rest.

_Why am I here? _

He took a step forward, carefully examining the red house with a white door. Pulling his sonic screwdriver from his pants pocket, he did a quick scan to see if there was any threat. Any sort of danger that would've made the TARDIS decide to bring him here. There was nothing. Everything checked out normally.

"Why am I here old girl? What made you bring me here?" He asked the TARDIS as he rested a hand on one of the doors, trying to get her to answer.

No response. Not even a hum. There had to be some reason as to why he was here.

He was on Earth. The same time zone he was in before he regenerated. As far as he could tell, the only alien around was himself, so there was no real reason for him to be here.

"So why am I here?" He asked no one in particular.

He finally decided that he might as well go up to the house and figure out who lived there. Maybe that would give him the answer he was looking for. He walked up the pathway and was just about to knock when he heard a loud banging sound followed by a thud like someone falling down the stairs. Without thinking, the Doctor used his sonic screwdriver to unlock the door and ran inside the house to see what had happened.

The first thing the Doctor saw as he ran inside the house, was the back of a blonde woman laughing at a man laying on the floor in a kitchen. The man had water all over his front and he was holding a wrench. The sink was in about 20 pieces and strewn about all over the floor.

"You're a nutter." The woman said laughing as she threw a towel at the man.

"I was trying to fix the sink. It was making a weird wibbly wobbly sound" the man said with a chuckle as he wiped his face with the towel and stood up.

The Doctor froze. He knew that voice. He watched in utter astonishment as the man turned around. Dark hair, hazelnut eyes. All that was missing was the suit and tie. For a minute, the Doctor thought he was back in time, watching himself interact with the blonde woman who still hasn't turned around. The man, who he now realized was in fact John Smith, the human version of the Doctor, noticed the Doctor standing with his hand on the knob to the front door staring at him and the woman in sheer amazement.

"Rose..." John said, keeping his eyes on the man.

Rose turned around, still smiling, as her eyes fell upon the man standing at the door with a look of confused, utter fascination on his face.

She sighed, "You might as well come on in Doctor. Close the door behind you, you weren't raised in a barn were you?" She looked at John, who shook his head with an amused smile on his lips, confirming that he in fact wasn't raised in a barn.

The Doctor closed the door slowly, keeping his eyes on Rose. "How did you..." he whispered as he walked into the kitchen, smiling at pictures on the walls in the living room before finishing his sentence. He cleared his throat and spoke again, louder this time.

"How did you know it was me?"

Rose simply smiled and went up to give him a hug.

"John can feel every regeneration. He gets head aches when you die. He slept for 15 hours during your last one.. It must have been rough." She said with a sad look in her eyes. The Doctor still had her in his arms. He missed this. Being able to hold her. He smiled as she pulled away. Knowing that she now had John. And by the looks of the pictures on the wall, one of them being a wedding photo, she was happy.

"But this one," Rose continued, "Johns head only hurt for about 5 minutes. Must not have been that bad, yeah?"

The Doctor smiled and asked the question that had been prying at the back of his mind since he first saw them.

"How did you get here?"

"Torchwood." John said, finally speaking up. "They found another crack in time. The only way to fix it was to go through and close it from this side. Rose and I already know this universe, so we decided to be the ones to close the breach."

"Where did the crack end up being?" The Doctor asked,watching as John's eyes fell. He heard Rose take in a deep breath and he knew, without her even saying it, where the crack had been.

"Dårlig Ulv-Stranden" Rose whispered, looking at the Doctor who mouthed the words Bad Wolf Bay as translation.

The Doctor cleared his throat. "Right..." He whispered, looking around the room, trying not to think about that day that had been the worst day of his 10th self's life. Walking more towards the living room, he spotted their wedding picture once more. He smiled as he pointed at it.

"So, when did you lot get married?"

"About two years after we said goodbye to you." Rose said smiling at the picture, thinking back of good memories. She was about to open her mouth to say something else when there was a sound coming from upstairs that sounded like a baby crying.

The Doctor eyed Rose curiously, and before anyone could say anything, he was up the stairs in an instant and in a room with a beautiful crib and an even more beautiful baby crying inside it.

The Doctor smiled at the little baby, noticing its curly blonde hair and the gold specks in its hazelnut eyes.

"Hello! I'm the Doctor!" He said cheerily as Rose and John walked in the room moments later. He bent down to pick up the baby and cradled it as he looked intently at its little face.

"Orianna? That is a beautiful name! So you're a girl then?" The baby let out a cry, almost as if she was annoyed.

"How was I supposed to know you're a girl?!" The Doctor asked her as he played with her fingers. "You're not exactly wearing pink, now are you?"

He looked at Rose, wondering why she had her daughter dressed in a dark yellow onesie. The color was almost gold even. Orianna cooed, telling the Doctor why she in fact, was not wearing pink.

"You hate pink?" The Doctor said staring at the creature as if she offended him. "Your favorite color is gold? Well that's interesting, considering your name does mean golden." He said that last bit almost amused at how Rose and John named her that. Knowing that John had asked her what she wanted to be named and she told him. A little trick Time Lords could do, talking to babies. He was sure John was more than happy that he had that ability.

The Doctor handed Orianna to her mother just as the baby told him she was hungry.

"Well I don't have what you want!" The Doctor told her as he had handed her over.

Rose giggled as she wrapped a blanket around herself and Orianna, getting ready to feed her.

"Her middle name is Phoebe," Rose told the Doctor who only chuckled again at the name "means the shining one."

"So her name is Golden Shining One? I 'spose it is better than Jackie." The Doctor said with a look of disgust on his face. Behind him, John laughed.

"I actually thanked Ori for not wanting to be called that name." John said, still chuckling.

After Rose had finished feeding the baby and put her back to sleep, she and John walked The Doctor outside and to the TARDIS. The Doctor hugged them and promised he would be back. Rose told him he better be and smiled at him with her tongue sticking out from her teeth. He smiled back, missing the way that smile made him feel. Knowing that her smile now belonged to John. He looked at the copy of his 10th self and smiled, shook his hand and wished him the best of life.

As he walked inside the TARDIS, Rose spoke up. Looking at the Doctor with conviction.

"Don't be a stranger. Come back and see us. I might even bake some banana bread."

At that statement both of the men's mouths began to water.

"I'll come back," he promised her, as the doors to his time machine closed in front of him.

He went to the console and pulled some levers, deciding on a new place to go for some adventure. He smiled as he watched his former companion and her husband disappear slowly. Knowing that he, in fact, would be coming back. Of that he was certain.


	4. Chapter 4: Three AM

THREE A.M.

The Doctor walked back in the TARDIS after visiting the planet Flogphrun. He was there to enjoy the scenery of the purple grass and orange sky. It ended with him saving the whole planet from an odd alien race that fed on your eyes.

"I almost lost my eyes today." The Doctor told the TARDIS as he went to sit down on the captains chair.

"Ended up saving everyone and everything on the planet." He sighed then, wondering why everyone he ever met was so helpless.

"One of the children I saved had curly hair." The Doctor said, smiling as he thought of that creature. So small, so fragile. "Reminded me of Orianna Tyler." He said, suddenly having a craving for banana bread.

He stood up and went over to the console.

"What do you say about going to visit Rose?" the TARDIS hummed happily, agreeing to visit.

The Doctor smiled as he set their course for the Tyler residence.

The TARDIS arrived in the middle of the night. All was quiet outside. The only sound was of the night animals singing their songs to one another. The Doctor decided he should change before visiting them. His shirt was ripped and dirty, and his shoes looked more brown instead of green. He went and put on a red shirt and matching trainers before walking out of the TARDIS.

He walked up to the house and knocked. Not really thinking that at 3 in the morning, Rose and John were sleeping. When no one came to the door, he knocked louder. Calling out Rose and John's names trying to get their attention. Finally, Rose came to the door. Her hair was a mess and she was wearing a pink fluffy robe and matching slippers.

"Doctor? What are you doing here?!" She asked, clearly annoyed that he had woken her up.

For a moment, the Doctor worried that he had come too early, and that Rose and John hadn't met him yet. But upon seeing a little girl walk up to Rose holding a teddy bear, he knew that he was in the future, and not the past.

"Hello Rose!" The Doctor said cheerily, ignoring the look of anger on his past companions face.

He walked past her into the living room and smiled down at the little girl, who was now holding on to Rose's leg staring up at the Doctor.

"And miss Orianna! How are you, love?" The Doctor said as he patted her head. She giggled and went to run into his arms. The Doctor gladly took the hug and lifted her up, holding her against his chest.

"So," the Doctor said to Rose after a couple of minutes of holding Orianna. "I was wondering if that offer still stands about the banana bread?" He asked, smiling at Rose.

Rose had to keep from slapping him in the face.

"You came to my house, and woke my daughter up at 3 O'clock in the morning for banana bread?!" She was seething, her face was red with anger and the Doctor had to keep himself from laughing. She looked adorable when she was angry.

"Well, time _is_ irrelevant Rose." The Doctor said backing away from her.

"You have a TIME MACHINE!" Rose screamed, making him jump.

"Ah, hello Doctor." John greeted, walking down the stairs toward them. "I was wondering why Rose was so angry. Knew it had to do with you."

His hair was in all different crazy directions and he had the beginning of a beard. He was wearing a blue robe and blue and white pajama bottoms, with fluffy blue slippers that matched his robe. The Doctor smiled at John for looking so domestic, and whispered something about Rose blowing the whole thing out of proportion just because she didn't feel like making banana bread. Orianna giggled against him as John chuckled slightly, hoping that Rose hadn't heard that.

She did. Of course she did.

Rose sighed and took Orianna from the Doctor.

"Let's get you back to bed little one. Before the madman decides he wants a turkey dinner with that banana bread." Rose said through clenched teeth as she carried Orianna to her room.

Suddenly wanting turkey, the Doctor called after Rose. "Actually, a turkey dinner sounds lovely!"

Rose muttered something that sounded a lot like a certain word a child should not hear.

The Doctor laughed and sat down on the couch talking to John.

"So, you're finally ginger." John said as the Doctor smiled really big and touched his hair.

"Yes! Isn't it tremendous?" John snickered, enjoying how it felt like he was talking to an old friend. There was no awkwardness between them, as he had thought there would be.

They continued laughing and joking around when the Doctor suddenly had an idea.

"I'll be right back!" He said giddily as he shot up from the couch and ran out the door.

He arrived a couple minutes later holding a long brown coat. John instantly lit up at seeing the coat the 10th incarnation had worn.

The Doctor walked closer to him and eyed him apologetically. "I know you don't wear the suit, and I know you are basically just my hand, but I thought you might like to have this..." He trailed off, fearing that his clone would hit him or scream at him for bringing back those memories. He did not expect for John to hug him.

"Thank you!" John beamed, grabbing the coat from him, taking off his robe revealing a matching pajama top, and putting it on. He smiled his 'Doctor' smile and hugged the Doctor again.

The Doctor, clearly shocked by the affection from John, blushed and struggled not to stutter as he said you're welcome.

"Wow. It's like going back in time."

The Doctor and John looked at the staircase as Rose walked down the last step shaking her head at her husband.

John simply smiled his Doctor smile again at her and grabbed her in a tight embrace.

"Well, Mrs. Smith, what do you say about going upstairs and playing a little game I'd like to call Doctor?" He whispered in her ear, waggling his eyebrows.

Rose giggled and the Doctor gagged.

"I uh, I should go..." The Doctor said, backing toward the door, clearly uncomfortable.

Rose, remembering he was still there, called him back.

"Oi! Stay Doctor! Orianna wanted to know if you would have a play date with her when she wakes up." The Doctors hearts warmed when she said this, and he smiled a big smile.

"Besides, I still have to make you banana bread don't I?" Rose said as she smiled with her tongue poking between her teeth.

The Doctor agreed to stay. He kissed Rose's cheek good night, and went and sat on the couch in the living room facing the television.

"Oh and one more thing Doctor," Rose said, stopping on her way up the stairs; "if you're going to fiddle with the telly, could you add some alien channels on there? I do miss 'Beebe and Scart'"

The Doctor chuckled and agreed to get her favorite show about an alien woman named Beebe who came to work for a wealthy alien man named Scart, helping raise his children after their mother Blergh got eaten by an alien worm. It's a rather funny show. Bit sexual, and he never liked that Clii woman who worked with Scart and was always trying to get Beebe fired. The Doctor sighed, Rose made him domestic. He used to never watch the telly. Now, as he had used his sonic screwdriver to get alien channels, he sat back watching Beebe and Scart, rolling his eyes as Beebe would do yet another thing that should get her exiled and killed but Scart ignored it, because he loved her.

"Bit of rubbish, this show is." The Doctor said, rolling his eyes at the way the two aliens were unaware that the other loved them.

"Enough of that," he stated, as he changed the channel.

Immediately, he regretted his decision as he stared at the childrens show that had talking horses singing about friendship.

"Bloody hell," the Doctor mumbled as he grabbed the remote to change the channel.

"Don't change it! I love this show!"

The Doctor turned upon hearing the little girls voice. He smiled as he saw Orianna clutching her teddy bear, leaning against the railing of the staircase.

"Good morning miss," he said cheerily, calling her over to come sit next to him.

Orianna sat next to the Doctor, one hand clutching her teddy bear, which she had said his name was Captain, her other hand holding the Doctors.

"Captain huh? That's an interesting name. What made you come up with it?"

"My Uncle Jack named him. He used to be a captain."

The Doctor instantly laughed. _Jack Harkness? He was her Uncle? Tremendous! _

"Your Uncle Jack seems like a good man."

Orianna smiled, agreeing that he was.

"My mum says he's bollocks, what does that mean?"

The Doctor gasped as the little girl practically cursed.

"It means your mum needs to watch what she says around little girls," he replied, looking down at her. Giving her his best stern look, he added "and little girls should not be repeating what their mum says."

Orianna smiled up at him and leaned against him. The Doctor instinctively wrapped his arm around her shoulder, pulling her closer to him. His hearts swelled at how much this little girl meant to him. He smiled as Orianna started singing along to the show they were watching. Deciding that she should probably eat, he got up and found some cereal in the kitchen. Making two bowls of that and two cups of orange juice, he walked back in the living room and handed Orianna a bowl and cup. She looked at the bowl like it was going to bite her.

"My mum doesn't let me eat in here," she told him, clearly worried to even touch her food.

"Well, is your mum awake? No, so go right ahead." The Doctor said back. He sighed as Orianna gave him a disapproving look.

"Trust me," he told her as he took a bite of cereal, "I'm the Doctor."

Orianna beamed at him and began to eat her cereal.

About 30 minutes and 42 seconds later, as the Doctor was cleaning their dishes and Orianna was singing to Captain, Rose and John walked down the stairs.

"Hello Smiths!" the Doctor beamed at them as he handed them two plates consisting of pancakes, bacon, and scrambled eggs. Surprised by the Doctors domestics, Rose and John took the plates thankfully. He then handed them each a cup of coffee.

"Thought you'd like some breakfast!" He smiled at them as they greedily ate the food and drank the french vanilla flavored coffee.


	5. Chapter 5: Playdate

PLAY DATE

After they were done eating and the Doctor washed their dishes for them, Orianna tugged on the Doctors hand.

"Doctor? Can we go play now?"

"Of course love! What do you want to play? Chess? Checkers? Hop Scotch?" The Doctor asked her excitedly, thinking of the games he missed playing. Orianna shook her head at every suggestion and, still holding the Doctors hand, pulled him into her room. When they walked into her bedroom, Orianna grabbed a blonde barbie doll and handed him Captain.

"This game is called companion!" The Doctor gaped at her as she continued on the rules of the game.

"I'll be the companion, and you be the captain that saved the companion from the mean alien Time Lord."

Taken aback, the Doctor gasped.

"Mean alien? How in the universes am I a mean alien?!"

Orianna shrugged her shoulders at him.

"Uncle Jack said there was a Time Lord alien that was really mean to mum, and he had to rescue her from becoming heartbroken."

The Doctors hearts hurt upon hearing her words. He felt like he was going to be sick. He knew he had completely broken her. But he never thought that Jack had resented him for it. Mickey, sure. But Jack?

"Does Ro- does your mum still hurt from the mean alien?"

Orianna smiled at him. "No. Mum told me that he came back and gave her something that was the best thing she could have ever asked for."

"What's that?"

"Me."

The Doctor smiled at that. _Yes, I suppose I did give her that didn't I? I gave her John, who is me, in a sense. And in turn, gave her a family._

He set Captain down and took the barbie out of Orianna's hand.

"How about we play a different game? But first, I have a question for you miss. Are you happy with your mum and dad?"

Orianna beamed at him. "Yes, of course! My daddy is the best and he always tells the best bed time stories! And mum gives the best hugs."

The Doctor smiled at that. _Yes, _he thought_, she does._

"I noticed you call your father daddy but you don't call your mother mummy. Why is that?" He asked her, wondering why a 5 year old doesn't call her mother what most kids her age call theirs.

Orianna shrugged. "Mum doesn't like being called mummy. She said it brings back bad memories from something that happened in her past."

The Doctor laughed at this. _Bad memories indeed._ With a mischievous look in his eyes he bent down so he was eye level with Orianna.

"I think I figured out a game we can play", he whispered as he told her his plan.

Rose was in the kitchen making banana bread as promised when she felt someone staring at her. She looked behind her and there was nothing. Shrugging it off, she went to pull the first batch out of the oven when she heard heavy breathing behind her. Once again shrugging it off as she found there was nothing. _Maybe Orianna and the Doctor are playing hide and seek. _She thought to herself as she pulled the bread out of the pan and let it cool down on a plate. She went back to the oven and placed the second batch in. Closing the door and turning around, she froze. A little girl was standing in front of her wearing a gas mask. She had on the same period of clothing and the same type of gas mask from when she and the Doctor had visited London during WWII. She even had the perfect cut on her hand.

"John!" She called, hoping beyond hope that this was a nightmare and that she would wake up in bed in her husbands arms.

A couple minutes later a man walked behind the little girl. He was wearing the same style of clothing, same scar, same gas mask.

For some reason, Rose thought she was back in time. That maybe she was reliving the adventure she and her big eared Doctor once had. On instinct, she called out his name.

Another man came up behind the two already standing in the doorway.

"Doctor! Doctor please!" She was to the brink of tears.

_This can't be happening. I don't want to be like them. Doctor where are you?!_

The little girl spoke first. "Mummy? Are you my mummy?"

Before Rose could even breathe, the men chimed in, and all three started walking toward her.

"Mummy? Mummy. Muuuuuuuuummmmmmmmyyyyyyyyyy y."

Rose had her back to the refrigerator, the three people were mere inches away. The little girl moved forward more and touched Roses hand.

"Don't be scared mummy. We just want to play."

Roses eyes grew wide as the girl touched her skin.

"No." she whispered.

One of the men chuckled. Chuckled?

Rose grabbed the gas mask and pulled it off, revealing her little girl.

"You..." she trailed off, glaring daggers at the two men standing behind Orianna. One of the men took off his gas mask and gave her a look of apology. The other man, or rather Time Lord, was laughing so hard his gas mask was shaking.

Rose walked up to him and ripped his gas mask off. The Doctor stared back with a smirk on his face as he tried hard not to laugh again. His eyes grew wide as Roses hand went up and collided with his face.

SMACK! SMACK!


	6. Chapter 6: The Fury of Rose Tyler

THE FURY OF ROSE TYLER

After 5 minutes of holding the ice pack John gave him to his right cheek, the Doctor moved it to his left, wincing at the immediate pain and release as the ice pack touched his skin. Rose walked into the room carrying a plate of banana bread. Handing it to him, she spoke up.

"Well, you got your wish Doctor. You're rude **and** ginger."

Giving him a sympathetic look as he chewed the bread and winced as his cheeks went up and down with the movements, she placed her hand on his leg and asked him with sincerity in her voice.

"How're your cheeks? Do you need anything? Some water? Milk?"

The Doctor placed his hand on hers and smiled at her.

"Don't tell me you're acting like a mother after the fright I put you through." Shaking his head and chuckling at her, he picked up a piece of banana bread and shook it at her before taking a bite.

"I've got everything I need here. Best banana bread I've ever had."

He smiled at her and leaned up to kiss her forehead.

"Thank you, Rose."

She smiled back and was about to say something else when he spoke again. She didn't miss the mischievous gleam in his eyes or the playful grin he was giving her as he said, very much sounding like a little boy, "You're the best mummy I could have ever asked for!"

This time he was able to shield himself away from the hand that was coming toward him. Jumping to his feet, the Doctor sprinted toward the door. Rose was right behind him. Throwing shoes and anything else she could find. She was running after the Doctor out the door, chasing him all around the yard.

"Doctor! You can't run forever! Don't even think about running into that TARDIS!"

The Doctor was almost to the TARDIS and snapped his fingers. Nothing. The doors didn't open. Grabbing for his key and putting it into the lock he felt a shock.

"What?"

Rose was coming closer to him now. He tried the lock again and once again got shocked.

"What?!"

Rose was right behind him and, grabbing his shirt, she tugged him back and hit him with a pillow. Smiling to herself, she walked up to the TARDIS and put a hand on the door.

"Thanks, old girl. You've always been there for me." The TARDIS hummed happily in reply.

"WHAT!" The Doctor looked confused. The women in his life were plotting against him. AGAIN.

"I thought you knew by now Doctor, don't mess with Tyler women." John said, as he walked toward them.

"Never underestimate the fury of Rose Tyler." the Doctor said, agreeing.

Looking over at Rose and smiling his best goofy grin, he hit her playfully with the pillow.

"Who's afraid of the big bad wolf?"

Rose giggled at that and she smirked at him as he glared at his TARDIS and back at her.

"I don't care what you say," he was speaking to the TARDIS, "it was worth it."

Looking at Rose and John with a confused look on his face, the Doctor asked them both with the most serious tone of voice.

"You're not human are you?"

Rose answered him with a sly smile on her lips. "Was wonderin' when she'd tell you. I'm the big bad wolf Doctor. And John is part Time Lord. We have one heart, and we don't regenerate. But, a couple months ago, I shoulda died and I woke up like nothing happened."

The Doctor was about to ask about John, when the man himself spoke up.

"Fighting an alien in the other world, I was shot. I was ready to tell Rose I loved her one last time, but there was this golden light and I was fine again. I thought I was regenerating, I really did. But, that's impossible. Because I'm not a Time Lord, I'm human. But here I am. Alive. When I should be dead. Both of us should."

The Doctor pulled his sonic screwdriver out of his bigger on the inside jeans and pointed it at Rose and then John.

"Interesting. You both have Time Lord DNA. Not strong enough to regenerate. But strong enough that you will live for another thousand or so years. Interesting," he said again as he walked up to the house and called for Orianna.

As soon as Orianna walked into view, the Doctor pointed his sonic at her and looked at it curiously. His eyebrows furrowed together and he had a puzzled look on his face.

"Very interesting," he repeated as he looked at all three people who were waiting patiently for him to say something else.

"You, Orianna Phoebe Tyler-Smith, are human."

Rose was about to ask how she wasn't part Time Lord like they were when John spoke up, using his Doctor voice.

"Of course. It makes perfect sense. Rose and I are only part Time Lord. It's like having a heritage in you." he looked at Rose then, making sure she was following what he was saying. "When you have children, the heritage in them is smaller than it was in you because it's being downsized to fit their DNA. So, Ori has Time Lord DNA, but it is so small that she registers as human. Fantastic!"

Rose, still not quite comprehending what her husband was trying to say, looked at the Doctor expectantly. He had the same giddy grin on his face that John had on his. Noticing Rose looked completely lost, he smiled at her and said the simplest explanation that he could think of.

"Orianna has gold specks in her eyes. That's as much of Time Lord as she can have."

Slowly registering what it meant, Rose found herself being relieved that her daughter wasn't part alien.

"Look at you two. Defenders of the Earth." The Doctor was looking at John and Rose with such approval in his eyes. He was truly proud of them.

After getting a message on his psychic paper, the Doctor hugged the Tyler-Smiths and promised to come back. Orianna grabbed his leg and asked a question that made the Doctors hearts swell.

"Doctor? Can I come with you in your box?"

"Well, right now you're a little too young. But perhaps when you're older you can be my companion." He told her, looking to Rose and John for acceptance. Rose smiled and John nodded yes. Smiling at them, he hugged Orianna tight and told her the first place he would take her when she was old enough. She smiled back and told him she couldn't wait until she was old enough to go traveling. Feeling the paper get hotter, the Doctor said his goodbyes and walked into the TARDIS. He smiled as he set route for where the distress call was coming from. He was glad at that moment that he had a time machine. He didn't want to wait for more than 10 years to have Orianna on board the TARDIS. He was a little sad that he wouldn't be able to watch her grow up, but he could do that later. For now, he couldn't wait to show her all of time and space.

It would be tremendous.


	7. Companion

John Smith was pacing around his daughters bedroom trying to figure out the best punishment for what she did at school earlier that day.

Orianna Tyler-Smith was sitting on her bed looking rather bored. After an awkward fifteen minutes and thirty six seconds of silence, the person in trouble decided to speak up.

"I don't see what was so bad about what I did dad. I saved that little kid didn't I?"

"At the risk of killing nearly everyone in your school! Honestly Ori! What's gotten into you? You're gallivanting around at only 16 trying to be the protector of the Earth. That is not your job young lady!"

John found it hard to be upset with his daughter. How could you be angry with someone for saving the life of someone else? But Rose was upset because her daughter was in danger, so John had to act the part of the protective father. But in all honesty, he was very proud. He sat down next to her on the bed and sighed. She really was a spitting image of her mother. The only thing that was him was her hazelnut brown eyes and her constant need to save the Earth. But, that was her mother as well.

"Ori, your mother is just worried about you. You're always at risk of getting yourself killed. We just-"

"Oh like she has room to talk. Mum never once risked her life before? She never once saved the world?"

"Yes, she does that everyday. But Orianna, your mother isn't exactly limited to one life. She can live for another thousand years. When you die, that's it for you. You're dead."

"Yeah and before this new found power, she never once risked her life to save the world? Really dad? I'm not stupid. I have enough Time Lord to not be a nutter!"

John winced. He forgot the most vital part of her mother that she had. Her temper.

"Bad wolf indeed." He muttered under his breath. Sighing again, John looked at his daughter pointedly. Opening his mouth to say something else, he was caught off guard by the famliar whirring sound of a space and time machine from Gallifrey. Standing up, he looked at his daughter who had a sly smile on her lips and a look of adventure in her eyes.

"This conversation isn't over young lady." John told her sternly as he left the room, cursing the Doctor silently for showing up at this time.

The Doctor landed the TARDIS in the living room of the Tyler-Smiths house. He stepped out onto the carpet and came face to face with John Smith and a girl who looked a lot like Rose, but had a bit of John in her as well. Smiling widely he ran up to the girl and grabbed her in his arms.

"Orianna! So good to see you! I told you when you are older I will take you on an adventure, did I not? So let's get going! Wait..." Pulling out his sonic screwdriver, the Doctor pointed it at Orianna and pressed a button. His smile faded as he looked at his screwdriver intently.

"Right... You're only sixteen years, seven months, and twenty days old." Putting his sonic back into his pocket he let Orianna go, shook Johns hand and walked back into the TARDIS.

"Right then, I'll be off now. See you in two years!"

"Oi! Hold on Doctor! What d'ya mean you'll see me in two years?! Where're ya goin'?" Orianna was staring at the Doctor with a look of hurt and confusion on her face. "You're just gonna leave? I haven't seen you in ten years and you're just gonna up and leave like that?"

"Well... It's actually been eleven years, five months and seventeen days. But who's counting?"

"You are! And no! You are not just leaving after being here not even five minutes!"

The Doctor opened his mouth, about to speak when Orianna spoke again.

"Okay, so it's been seven minutes and 46 seconds. Still, don't go just yet, Doctor. Please?"

The Doctor grinned widely at her as he pulled her into a tight embrace.

"Oh, I could never say no to you miss Tyler-Smith!"

When Orianna's heartbeat increased rapidly, the Doctor almost wanted to check to make sure she was okay. But, upon feeling her smile in his chest, his smile grew bigger knowing why her heart was beating so fast.

Feeling his own heartsbeat getting faster as well, the Doctor suddenly felt very shy.

Pulling away from the hug and closing the TARDIS door behind him, the Doctor looked down at his converse and attempted to speak. "Right.. well..." clearing his throat, he spoke again. "Where's your mother?"

John's face suddenly got red, like he remembered what he was doing before the Doctor had showed up. "She's at work. Good thing too. Considering what Ori did.. You're the last person Rose wants to see at the moment." He looked at Orianna disapprovingly.

The Doctor looked at Orianna questioningly. "What did you do to make your mother angry?"

Orianna just rolled her eyes. "Oh, you know mum. She gets mad at just about anything. Not cleaning my room, forgetting to do the dishes, blowing up a school..." She said that last part under her breath. But with the Doctors Time Lord superior hearing, he heard exactly what she said.

"You blew up a school?! Why in all the universes would you blow up a SCHOOL?! What were you thinking young lady?! You-" the Doctor took a deep breath. He had no idea why he was so angry. She didn't kill anyone, John would've told him immediately if someone died. Perhaps he was so angry because it was Orianna. _His _Orianna. She could've gotten hurt. She could've gotten ki- _When did I start referring to Orianna as mine? She doesn't belong to me. She doesn't belong to anyone. Does she? I should ask her if she is seeing anyone. No, she can't be. John would never allow it. And I don't have a right to ask if she's with someone. Even if she was... I'm probably like her uncle. Like her Uncle Jack. I wonder how Jack is doing. I should give him a call sometime. I wonder how Torchwood is going. I wonder how Gwen is handling being second in comand. Or if- Why is Orianna staring at me like that? Oh yes! I was angry. What was I angry about? Oh right!_

Orianna was staring at the Doctor with watery eyes. Her bottom lip was sticking out and quivering.

_She's about to cry? Why is she about to cry? I'm sure she's heard this same speech from both of her parents. Why is it me that is making her cry?! Why do I always hurt EVERYONE?!_

He was getting angry again. This time at himself. He blamed himself for the look on his precious girls face. The tears that were threatening to fall from her eyes. Because of him. Because he raised his voice. Taking another deep breath, he walked up to her and placed his hand on her cheek.

"Pl- Please don't cry Orianna. Ju- just tell me..." he cleared his throat, trying desperately to calm himself down. "Tell me what happened?"

Orianna smiled brightly and started telling the Doctor what she did to get herself expelled.

"There was this weird creature. It was ruthless and was out for blood. It kept screamimg 'Exterminate' and was about to kill this little boy. I couldn't just stand there and let that happen. So, I grabbed a fire extinguisher and popped off the tube and lit it on fire. Did you know when you add fire to a fire extinguisher it blows up? It was really cool. So, I screamed 'Hey! Trash can!' and I threw the flaming extinguisher at the thing and it blew up... along with most of the school. But, I managed to get everyone out! I'd say I deserve a good citizens award for that, don't you?" She was smiling really big at the Doctor, completely oblivious to the fact that he was terrified.

"You... you fought a Da- a Dalek- What the hell are-"


End file.
